Letters to the Editor published Saturday, August 25, 2012

Do you sometimes wish you could bring rainbows and sunshine on a foggy day to brighten your spirit? To me it is very simple, it is when you are helping an innocent animal from all the turmoil life may have given, and know you can make a difference.

A program – Igive.com – is an amazing program and very little effort is needed on your part except to do what most enjoy: shopping. In return you will be helping homeless doggies at the shelter in Gold Beach. All you do is go to www.Igive.com put in Pennies for Pooches and there will be hundreds of well-known stores to shop. With each purchase they will give a percentage to the non-profit Pennies for Pooches. This is all free to you except what you purchase. You can do it all year long, no restrictions.

Be a volunteer, which is the backbone of it all and at Pennies for Pooches they are respected as such. Come down and be a member of this caring family, and are surrounded by dog lovers, a great place to be. Don’t be shy; come to fundraiser meetings, give your ideas and opinions, work together to make it all happen. Donations are appreciated: Pennies for Pooches P.O. Box 1883 Gold Beach, Oregon 97444 call 541-247-2514.

Our doors are open seven days a week. Wherever there is a dog in need there is an opportunity for kindness. Spay and neuter and license your pet. Don’t breed or buy; be the solution not the problem.

Beverly Duncan, volunteer, Pennies for Pooches

Brookings

Vote for what’s best for America

Editor:

Wake up America! Study the issues! Be sure to vote!

This is the very first letter I have written to a newspaper in my lifetime. This is also the most important election to be held in my 79-year lifetime.

However, it is the easiest election to decide: capitalism or socialism. If you have any questions about these two political systems, just study the countries of Europe.

People ask me, “Why are you so worried at your age?” This election is not primarily about me; it is about the future for my kids, my grandkids, and all the young people in the country.

Most importantly, vote for the political system you think will be the best for America.

If our Health Department manager desires to do something really spectacular for our entire community, start inspecting the public restrooms of all our local restaurants and put an inspection grade of A-B-C-D-F on the door of the “Johnny.” That would let us decide if we wanted to wait till we got home to use our own facilities or chance-it and see what’s behind Door “A” and so on. …

That might prove our government folks such as the Curry Health Department under the guidance of Ms. Klinefelter was doing something worthwhile that wasn’t going to cost us seniors a whole bunch of unneeded taxes and it would prove our local government folks (who get paid whether they do a good job or a bad job) were finally doing some good for us health-minded old people.

Meanwhile, stop trying to attract new people to our area with catchy phrases like: “Unhealthiest county in Oregon”!

Gary Smith

Pistol River

Kids should not bully, be bullied

Editor:

Here we are another school year.

Most of you know, I write this every year. I can’t stress enough for you to make yourself and your children aware of their rights and rules and the law when it comes to bullying. Your kids need to know who they can go to if they have a problem with a bully – whether it be on the streets or in school.

So please talk to your children. Stand up for them, with them. Don’t let their years in school be a nightmare.

Please teach yours not to be a bully or be bullied! It doesn’t go away and is life changing if you don’t know your rights and laws!

Good luck. ...

Elizabeth McDonough

Brookings

Dialysis center is non-feasible

Editor:

Bob Meunier writes in your Aug. 22 Pilot edition about the need for a dialysis unit in our community(s) and refers to the hospital’s disinterest in developing one. He further suggests the hospital is unaware of the need.

The Curry General Hospital Board of Directors asked me, upon arrival in June, to reinvestigate the feasibility of providing this service in an effort to keep people close to home and otherwise avoid for them the arduous journey for service when so ill. Truly that would be wonderful and alleviate much suffering. About five years earlier the hospital had investigated the development of this service and concluded it non-feasible and again as recently as two years ago pursued the recruitment of a nephrologist who, along with the hospital, found the numbers inadequate to pursue further.

Dialysis is a highly technical service and even the largest hospitals in the country have been divesting of it through sale to specialized providers. Thus, I contacted Fresenius, a large dialysis provider, and discovered they had in the recent past evaluated the feasibility of developing this service either in Gold Beach or Brookings. For feasibility, a minimum of 25 patients are required for break-even operation. They found less than half that number originate from our service area and they too concluded it infeasible.

Fresenius did mention home dialysis as an alternative and offered discussions with interested parties. Apparently this too was explored in the past; however, the home approach was, I am told, lacking in support from the patients and their families.

If advocates of providing this service locally can present names and other demographic information that credibly challenge these conclusions, then I am certain that will capture the attention of Fresenius and the hospital.

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